


The Game Theory

by MsQuarmby (wfg)



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Gen, Meta
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2019-02-28 21:09:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13279929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wfg/pseuds/MsQuarmby
Summary: Mycroft is M is Moriarty – therefore Sherlock's arch enemy is actually his own Big Brother.How the final problem is Mycroft trying to ensure Sherlock's "staying alive" – A meta series about the secret, tragic hero of this adaptation.





	1. Oh, Mycroft... what have you done?

**Author's Note:**

> This meta series is originally being published on Tumblr ([the-game-theory](http://the-game-theory.tumblr.com)), and will be updated every Tuesday.

A plane full of dead people set on autopilot and bound to crash, except it never even left the ground: Welcome to Sherrinford and "The Final Problem"!

Or wasn't that rather Bond Air and "A Scandal in Belgravia"?

**The parallels between the two episodes are striking – and, despite claiming to be the solution for everything, almost nothing in TFP (or series four in general) seems to make any sense in the context of the show we'd been watching so far.**

#### But sometimes, to solve a case, one must first solve another.

(And literally spend 1.5 years on a 20k meta series…)

**S4 was fucky, but it wasn't fucky on its own - something _caused_ it. **

**Therefore, in order to understand what happened in series four, it is important to figure out what led up to it; because, everything in this show is linked.**

**There _is_ an overarching story arc. **

And sometimes, a deception is so audacious, so outrageous that you can't see it even when it's been staring you in the face since the very first episode.

#### … let's talk about Mycroft Holmes

Mycroft Holmes – who is the British government. And the Secret Service. And the CIA on a freelance basis… which is kind of canon, when you think about it. Mycroft has always been "the central exchange" of all the information passed to him, "the clearinghouse, which makes out the balance. All other men are specialists, but his specialism is omniscience." (BRUC)

But Moftiss didn't only base their version of Mycroft on the ACD canon, but also very much on one of their "favourite" Sherlock Holmes adaptations: The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes. ([x](http://www.denofgeek.com/tv/sherlock/20536/steven-moffat-and-mark-gatiss-interview-sherlock)):

> **When you were hammering out the concept, did you look at any other adaptations of the books for ideas?**
> 
> **MG:** [...] Our favourite is the Billy Wilder film, _The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes_ , which is a perfect combination of reverence and irreverence. That's why it's absolutely authentic.

Which Mark emphasises also in the infamous BFI interview about this movie ([x](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otYRcTrK1d0)):

> **MG:** Because it felt to us that what Wilder was doing, was taking a sort of one-joke character and making it more sophisticated. The Diogenes Club are actually sort of the British Secret Service, and they're behind lots of things. And the whole idea of the brothers having a more fractious relationship, it's entirely from this film.
> 
> **[After discussing Mycroft's role in the books] And, you're right, in the books he's just really seen as clever but overweight and that's pretty much it. – I've read somewhere, I could be wrong, but Alan Moore in Extraordinary League of Gentlemen has him as M, Bond's boss, doesn't he?**
> 
> **MG [nearly choking on his drink because he's so eager to comment on this]:** Yes, it's clever isn't it? I mean, that's brilliant - the film wasn't [laughs] - but the way that he absolutely, you know, interlaces almost every aspect of late 19th century literature is breathtaking, really. 

(The whole excerpt from The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/169235682381/moriarty-british-intelligence-created-me-bond)))

#### Mycroft is M is Moriarty

**This meta is not M-theory,** despite the fact that there are a lot of names with the letter "M" involved. But while M-theory states that "Mycroft is under Jim's thumb", I am ([and have been](http://the-game-theory.tumblr.com/content)) proposing a different approach:

> **“Moriarty” is an organisation run by the government and/or a secret service, and (in some capacity) Mycroft is working for / in charge of it.**
> 
> **Basically, it is the “necessary evil”, an umbrella term for all the a-bit-not-so-good things which need to happen in order to keep the people safe.**

An omnipotent organisation like the one ACD originally gave Moriarty against which "the good guys" are _completely_ powerless just isn't realistic anymore nowadays ([x](http://waitingforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/154733831756/the-moriarty-project)).

Obviously I'm not saying that Mycroft is the person we know as "Jim Moriarty" – Andrew Scott is a brilliant actor, no doubt, but even he has his limits.

And yet, looking at how Andrew always very carefully emphasises how he did **NOT** base his version of Moriarty on the books _at all,_ but rather plays himself ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/151057603741/andrew-scott-sherlocked-2016-talk)) – which, for an _actor,_ is a remarkable thing to say – I'm quite certain that we are neither dealing with the typical archenemy!Moriarty nor his worldwide criminal network. 

#### It is not "Jim" who's in charge of this whole Moriarty business – it's Mycroft

**As pointed out before, the purpose of "project Moriarty" isn't essentially criminal.**

**It is the Coventry Conundrum, but on a far bigger scale.**

Some terrorists are to blow up a passenger jet and the government knows about it – do they not have to let it happen anyway in order to not expose the source of their information?

Apply this to crimes and terrorism _in general._ These things _happen,_ and there simply is no way to prevent all of it. And even if one had valuable insider information to at least take care of _some_ of them, is this source not going to be far more useful on the long run than sparing probably a negligible amount of civilians is _now?_

**People in certain positions have to make certain decisions – "for the greater good".**

But Mycroft Holmes, the most dangerous man you've ever met… he is so much cleverer than "people".

So, looking at the Coventry Conundrum, if _someone_ was to come up with a solution that managed to do _both_ , protect the source of the information _AND_ save the lives of innocent people…

Certainly, it would be Mycroft.

**And if it spares numerous lives, collecting and putting hundreds of corpses on a plane, and then blowing it up in order to fool some terrorists almost seems like an OK thing to do.**

#### But, if one is already pulling on some strings to orchestrate certain crimes, what harm could possibly be done by pulling on some more?

**Just in order to put the impact of all the crimes which are bound to happen to a, well, "beneficial" use… for example:**

  * Postpone the assassination of a person of interest so that the subsequent news coverage slightly tips the election in that week to a certain party's favour.
  * Help out a criminal who's looking for a professional forger by putting them in contact with one that's already on some secret service's watchlist.
  * Trick some terrorists into thinking that their terror attack was successful by blowing up a plane full of corpses– well, we've already covered that one, haven't we?



**Remember: Crimes like these would have happened _anyway_. By intervening, one is already trying their best to alter the events so that as few people as possible are harmed by this; if life's a balance sheet, they'd absolutely be in credit.**

**It is "for the greater good", after all.**

#### Mycroft Holmes, looking after Queen and country – like a proper Big Brother

You know… More surveillance is _always_ a good thing. 

**Information is power, after all.** ([x](https://bug-catcher-in-viridian-forest.tumblr.com/post/154011793386/i-the-information-point))

(Isn't it nice to see that Moftiss really seem to have put some thought into updating the canon material – beyond the introduction of smartphones? #1984)

**But information, as well as power, can always end up in the wrong hands. Therefore, someone gathering all this data would also have to make sure that they protect it.**

(Not quite sure they are doing a good job there…)

But (!) there is another, even more efficient way to keep a secret.

**The best way to keep a secret is not to have any (official) records about them, _at all -_ or at least be able to alter the already existing ones.**

There only is one person in the entire country with the ability to alter or even obliterate _any_ kind of record (at their sweet will) – **Mycroft Holmes literally is the D-Notice secretary. ([x](http://mollydobby.tumblr.com/post/153610275557/a-minor-position-in-the-british-government))**

**But where is the line between well-meant editing and fraudulent concealment?**

**And where do concerns about the general public's safety end and a person’s personal freedom begin?**

#### Isn't it just comforting to know that your big brother is watching (over) you?

**If only we were _just_ talking about Sherlock's "big brother"…**

(Wait, wasn’t Sherlock’s “arch-enemy” Moriarty? … :O )

The Holmes brothers relationship isn't what could be described as… easy. And Mycroft _looking out for_ Sherlock isn't only overprotection, but could almost be classified as actual surveillance.

Yet, both in their own, quite flawed and messed up way…

**God, they love each other so much.** (It's almost more heartbreaking than this whole Johnlock-mess, I'm not even kidding.)

Especially Mycroft – despite all of his human-error-caring-is-not-an-advantage-Ice-Man-nonsense; or maybe even because of it.

#### Mycroft is not an Ice Man ([x](https://jenna221b.tumblr.com/tagged/mycroft-is-not-an-ice-man))

Still, he very much pretends to be one.

And this for very good reasons.

**In order to keep the people around him safe, Mycroft feigns callousness.**

**Mycroft Holmes “doesn’t have” any pressure points.**

**Because Mycroft Holmes, the most powerful man in England, has got a lot of enemies.**

And we've already seen what this means for people dear to Mycroft; when it comes to it, they are nothing more than leverage.

**Due to who and what Mycroft is, they, too, are in danger.**

And, quite frankly, there are more dangerous people than Charles Augustus "businessman" Magnussen out there, who don't necessarily balance pros and cons before causing "too much damage to anyone important"…

**So, for Mycroft, what is the logical thing to do here? How can you save the people you love from being part of a domino chain which pursues no other goal than harming _you_?**

**Mycroft simply pretends not to care about them. That it doesn't matter if a person is family or not. That he is not given to outbursts of brotherly compassion, and therefore it would be pointless to use the people close to him as leverage.**

**That he would always act "for the greater good" and therefore even sacrifice his loved ones, if it was the necessary thing to do.**

#### However, in Sherlock's case, pretending not to care about him is far from enough to really ensure his safety

**He is, after all, only a stupid little boy who likes solving puzzles and causing trouble, as well as getting himself involved in all kinds of things… some of which are not considered to be "within the province of a private detective".**

That, or whenever his clients are too uninteresting to serve as a proper distraction, he "alleviates his boredom" by getting high.

**Mycroft knows that Sherlock's life permanently is in danger – either because of external threats, or Sherlock's own, sometimes rather self-destructive behaviour.**

**Or sometimes both.**

And, as stated earlier, this worry manifests in a rather excessive monitoring of Sherlock's every move, as well as of the people in his life.

**But, although Mycroft's position facilitates him to put Sherlock under this kind of surveillance, even he would not be _allowed_ to just do this without having any reason.**

**I mean, it's not like he doesn't have a reason, but if he was being honest about his true motives, one might find out that Mycroft does it because he _cares rather a lot_ about his sibling, and this is something we definitely want to avoid.**

**So, if Sherlock was considered to be a "threat", a "security concern", that would allow Mycroft to – very officially – keep an eye on him, right?**

Which is a very tricky situation, in which Mycroft has to be _really_ careful which string to pull...

**On the one hand, in order to be able to keep a weather eye on Sherlock, Mycroft has to convince his bosses that Sherlock is _enough_ of a concern to require surveillance, but harmless and/or manageable enough so that no one has to take more _drastic_ measures concerning this matter…**

**Because, as fate (and dramatic storytelling) wants to have it, Sherlock very often comes very close to (accidentally) discovering the truth about what secret shenanigans Mycroft is up to…**

And, again, TPLoSH!Mycroft has got the exact same problem :) Remember, _the_ adaptation why Mark's Mycroft is like that?

And later, after Sherlock OBVIOUSLY DID NOT listen to his brother…

The younger Holmes has always been known to keep the elder one on his feet, it seems… ([x](https://mavieenlair18.wordpress.com/2014/03/06/mark-gatiss-strengthen-the-brotherly-bonds-of-mycroft-and-sherlock-holmes))

> **MG:** For all of Mycroft’s disdain for his younger brother’s methods, he’s worried about him – **I think he wants him on the inside of a tent, pissing out,** as they used to say.

By the way, look at the whole quote and especially at who this nerd is quoting here – Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, about J. Edgar Hoover, the very first director of the FBI ([x](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/J._Edgar_Hoover)):

> **"It’s probably better to have him inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in."**

**For Mycroft, it would be better to have Sherlock working _for_ him than _against_ him.**

**However, since Sherlock _clearly_ has no intention to work for Mycroft, Mycroft at least has to ensure that Sherlock doesn't (accidentally) end up working against him.**

**The only problem is, that simply telling Sherlock _not_ to do something is like telling a five year old _not_ to stick beans up their nose…**

#### Thank god, Mycroft is the clever one…

(Most of the times, at least...)

If only Sherlock would, at least occasionally, listen to his big brother, we wouldn't be in half of the trouble we're in right now. Gosh, looking out for your stupid, junkie-detective sibling can be such a hassle…

And as much as Sherlock hates Mycroft for "being mother", for randomly showing up at crime scenes or in his flat to check if he's okay, for spying on him and offering the people around him money to do the same… he does kind of rely on all of this.

**Secretly, Sherlock knows that Mycroft is his safety net.**

**Even more, _he expects him to be._**

Don't get me wrong, in most cases Sherlock is very much capable of looking after himself (or at least lucky enough to not get caught pretending), but very often we seem him resorting to his personal Deus Ex Machina: **Mycroft is Sherlock's ultimate source of information and "favours".**

And Mycroft, feeling guilty about (insert tear-inducing background story), can't possibly reject those requests, **because he thinks it's his duty as a big brother to protect Sherlock – especially since his bad conscience feels responsible for *gestures vaguely* _"this"._**

**Yet, Sherlock believes to see Mycroft's a bit misguided, but unconditional love for what it "really" is: his meddling in Sherlock's life and controlling it beyond the point of Sherlock being able to act freely.**

**And Sherlock _hates_ Mycroft for doing this…**

#### Sherlock's arch enemy is his Big Brother

**However, unlike any other arch enemy, Mycroft would do anything at all to ensure Sherlock's "staying alive".**

But, that's what big brothers do, right? Whenever their little brothers get themselves into hot water, they'd do anything to get them out again.

**They'd do anything to _fix_ things.**

#### Dear Mycroft… will you please fix it for me?

**But, even for Mycroft Holmes, there is only so much he can fix – at least without causing other problems in return.**

… from the beginning then?

* * *

Why is the series called "Game Theory"? ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/169235759076/why-game-theory))


	2. Fix-It #1: Who or what is "Moriarty"?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to have a closer look at series 1 and set the stage...

**Or, asking the better question:**

Because, at the end of ASiP, a name is literally all Sherlock got – let’s try and disregard our preconceptions as readers of the canon for a moment: 

**"Moriarty" could stand for _anything_ at this point.** Simply one man, or so much more than that. 

An organisation? Maybe.

**In any case, who- or _what_ ever "Moriarty" is, it is certainly worth investigating – I mean, who would sponsor a serial killer??**

If that isn't at least an "eight", then I don't even know…

#### Sherlock discovers "Moriarty" in ASiP

And not only is the introduction of Sherlock's "arch enemy" much earlier (and also for very different reasons) than in the books, but the presence (or absence) of "Moriarty" is also one of the big differences between ASiP and the pilot episode.

**There simply was no Moriarty in the pilot.**

**But this isn't the only example where the pilot deviates from the final episode. Let's take a look at Jeff Hope, for example.**

Yes, in both versions Hope murders people by suicide after luring them into his Uber of Death™ ([@mollydobby](https://tmblr.co/m1MwrzIgWh8_oez0VPji5SA)), but the abduction of Sherlock himself plays out quite differently in ASiP: Rather than being drugged and then manhandled into the cab _without_ his consent, Sherlock now makes the decision to get into the cab himself.

Without calling for help. Without telling anyone where he is going.

Not necessarily because he wants to solve the case, i.e. convict the criminal – remember, Hope would have let Sherlock call the police, which is a choice pilot!Sherlock never even had – but simply because otherwise Hope would only confess _that_ he did it and not _how_ or _why_.

**Sherlock chooses to get into that cab and risks his own life because otherwise he will never learn the whole truth.**

~~(And maybe also because this little game is as much a diversion from his boredom as it is an opportunity to show off his cleverness in front of "not-his-date"...)~~

Obviously John wades in before Sherlock's self-destructive behaviour can do him any actual harm, but instead of dying instantly, in ASiP Hope still has got the time to surrender a name that will keep Sherlock busy for the next 14 episodes:

(It's almost as if Sherlock's whole life changed on one word or something, idek)

**I mean, someone who reappears in almost every single episode, while not featuring in even a handful of the books, must be important to the overarching plot of this specific adaptation, no?**

**Right! Mycroft Holmes also happens to be around a lot in the show, but wasn't in the pilot…**

Sounds a tiny bit like Moriarty ... they are so easily to mix up though, aren’t they?

[[Watch on Youtube]](https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=60&v=wxNIxlBKWk4)

^jk, Rebecca, you're doing fine.

*clears throat* ... Moving on in the story, then.

For now.

#### Sherlock (and John) catch themselves an international smuggler ring

**Or do you need further proof that the universe can be a real bitch sometimes? #it's always TBB ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/tagged/it's%20always%20tbb))**

Don't get me wrong: It indeed just sort of happens that Sherlock gets hired by an old friend from uni to investigate a case – after all, that is what private detectives do **– and, honestly, no one could have foreseen that this apparently random city boy suicide / murder would lead Sherlock and John to something so much "bigger"...**

Although, they both don't really seem to mind ([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/28march)):

> I can't deny that I prefer this kind of life. Being a civilian doesn't suit me. But the thing is, this life we've chosen isn't safe. Sherlock chooses to be this crusading consulting detective and I choose to be his colleague. But he's becoming known. People know of him. It's like that taxi driver said about how this Moriarty knew about him. Then the opera singer, she knew all about him. How long before someone else comes after him? And what happens to the people like Sarah or Mrs Hudson when that happens?
> 
> All these people he involves in his adventures... They're not safe. We're not safe. There are forces out there and they're coming for Sherlock Holmes.

But, it's a little bit odd, isn't it? It's not like every detective out there takes down international smuggler rings on a daily basis. "Their life" shouldn't really be _this_ dangerous, _this_ quickly – considering how little they probably know about the "big picture" after just this one (1) investigation.

**Yes, and this is actually the problem…**

> It was mad and confusing and brilliant. All these people and places across the city were linked by this smuggling ring and it makes you wonder what else is out there. Who's that person sitting next to you? What are they involved in?

**Because now _both you trash cans_ are more than only a bit intrigued by all of this, and not sensible enough to just… back off.**

#### How does Mycroft even sleep at night?

He literally did just upgrade their surveillance status, and those idiots have nothing better to do than go out and almost get themselves killed by an international crime syndicate – and, in addition to this, just drew immense, unwanted attention to themselves.

Going by what happened next, General Shan had probably also outlived her usefulness, or at least was considered a big enough threat for the safety of the organisation _due_ to her involvement with Sherlock Holmes, which is why she had to be taken care of rather permanently.

**In retrospect, it makes sense to assume that the "M" she talks to is "Moriarty"** – leader of an international criminal organisation, ruthlessly dealing with any of his minions who might be considered the minorest of inconveniences, and not very fond of people like Sherlock Holmes who do nothing but meddle with their business; **all of this is kinda what we would expect of a criminal mastermind, right?**

**How very reasonable of Jim to go all #yolo in the next episode and set up an elaborate scavenger hunt for exactly this man, this Sherlock Holmes, which is nothing but showing off his great criminal skillz and ends with him literally revealing himself to this oh-so-dangerous and inhumanely clever consulting detective, when no one else has ever seen his face or even heard his voice – and survived (!) it –**

**JUST BECAUSE THEY BOTH ARE _BORED_...**

#### What then was the purpose of TGG?

**Or asking differently: Why was it necessary for Sherlock to play Jim's "game"?**

**TGG is about introducing the concept of a "consulting criminal"** – not only to the audience, but also to Sherlock himself. And #OhWhatAWonderfulCoincidence, this is exactly what "Moriarty" (the name Hope gave Sherlock in ASiP) eventually turns out to be: a spider in the centre of a web.

The Napoleon of crime.

**And, what's even better: Sherlock didn't even have to work very hard to figure all of this out.**

**Jim literally came by to introduce himself, and he told Sherlock _everything_.**

**"Show, not tell" seems to work rather nicely, not only in storytelling…** A step-by-step breakdown of how _exactly_ this idea was planted in Sherlock’s head can be found in my "The Five Pips" series ([x](http://waitingforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/149473981776/the-five-pips)).

**But, why the effort?**

Would we, the audience, not have believed Sherlock if he simply had said, "Look. This is James Moriarty. He is my arch enemy, has been so for years already. I really don't like him, but he is far too clever to ever get caught and the police would never believe me, so fml" – like, this is literally how it went in the books???

However, in the BBC!verse, "Moriarty" is not merely used as a plot device to kill off Sherlock Holmes; **the conflict between hero and arch enemy literally is the core of the show,** which is probably _why_ we are shown how all of this started – which, at least from a storytelling point of view, is kind of beautiful.

**What doesn't make sense, however, is that a canonically very aloof and wary criminal mastermind would endanger himself and his entire organisation by making such a dramatic entrance "just to say hi" to the one man clever enough to actually be considered a threat – only to end up telling him to "back off" and seriously expecting him to do so?!**

**It's almost like Jim did indeed try very hard to get Sherlock interested in their little game – he even called him to give him a clue! – and then tried even harder _to make it look like_ he didn't mean it, **because it must have been obvious to him that Sherlock would do anything but let this go after what happened at the pool.

#### Which means, Jim actually _wanted_ Sherlock to notice him

**But would someone who just had one of their major minions silenced for good, because they were afraid that even the tiniest of traces could be enough to lead back to them, really be this careless?**

> SHAN: Without you – without your assistance – we would not have found passage into London. You have my thanks.  
>  M: GRATITUDE IS MEANINGLESS  
>  M: IT IS ONLY THE EXPECTATION OF FURTHER FAVOURS  
>  SHAN: We did not anticipate ... we did not know this man would come – this Sherlock Holmes. And now your safety is compromised.  
>  M: THEY CANNOT TRACE THIS BACK TO ME  
>  SHAN: I will not reveal your identity.  
>  M: I AM CERTAIN.

#### So... Who is "M"?

**Spoiler alert #1: It's not Jim.** Seriously. Jim wouldn't even talk like ^that.

**Spoiler alert #2: I hate to break it to you, but we've already known who "M" is since ASiP** – or at least those who've read Moffat's script have…  

^that's got more of the quite posh "gratitude is only the expectation of further favours" tone to it, no? (Also, “favours” ... :)) )

**Mycroft is M is Moriarty, which means that Sherlock's arch enemy is his Big Brother.**

#### But who is "Jim Moriarty" then?

^talking about hiding a lie in plain sight…

Granted, Jim doesn't have to be an actor-actor. It would actually make more sense if he was an agent who just happened to have acting skills (... don't they all) or maybe worked as an actor in his day-job (see part 4).

It really doesn't seem very likely that the "psychopath kid" who happened to commit the first murder Sherlock ever got involved in grows up to be a bored, suicidal genius leading a huge criminal network, and after years of quietly building himself a reputation as a consulting criminal, and decades of pining after the only other boy who might be clever enough to be interesting, _randomly_ decides to get in touch with this now-detective for seemingly no reason at all while putting literally everything he worked for at stake. 

#### Every _fairytale_ needs a good old-fashioned villain – however, _in real life,_ there are no arch enemies

**"Jim" is only meant to be the face of "Moriarty"; he is not in charge of it.**

**His only purpose/task at this point is to act as a distraction for Sherlock to keep him from discovering more about the _actual_ Moriarty project than he already has.**

**Jim is working for Mycroft.**

#### Mycroft created the perfect "playmate" for Sherlock

(The "Great Game", indeed…)

**And while such a deception, if not to call it betrayal, doesn't make Mycroft look like a very good big brother – or even a very good person – irony has it that it is actually the exact opposite.**

(It may have been a comedy, or it may have been a tragedy.)

**What "various reasons"?**

It's not like Mycroft really seems to bother about Sherlock finding out about this entire exchange shortly after – Sherlock doesn't even seem to be surprised or concerned about what Mycroft did _at all_ when John eventually ends up telling him about it.

**That's just what Mycroft does, no biggie.** Their relationship doesn't get any more or less difficult because Sherlock finds out about Mycroft's all too recent "concern".

**So, what exactly is Mycroft worried about here?**

#### Caring is not an advantage, indeed

**Mycroft is not worried that _Sherlock_ will find out that he worries about him (which is what John and therefore the audience believes – also, Sherlock wouldn't buy it anyway), but that _everybody else_ does.**

**He's got a reputation as an Ice Man to defend here, after all.**

**It is vital that everybody totally and utterly believes that Mycroft does not care about his brother, because it is the only thing that allows Mycroft to keep Sherlock save.**

With Sherlock constantly being on the verge of discovering the shadier parts of Mycroft’s activities, and being driven by the conviction that criminals should be arrested regardless of their “usefulness”, for Mycroft, Sherlock actually is a “legitimate security concern”.

And there are a lot of people who would like to see this "security concern" being dealt with.

… not only criminals.

**Looking at the much-cited "greater good", at some point the day would come when even the great Sherlock Holmes would finally have outlived his usefulness.**

**... but don't worry, Mycroft's got this:**

**_Who could possibly question the assessment of the Ice Man?_ He's not given to outbursts of brotherly compassion. You know what happened to the other one.**

**If Mycroft “Ice Man” Holmes says that Sherlock is useful, then Sherlock is useful. Full stop.**

But Sherlock's a real dumbass sometimes, and Mycroft permanently insisting on Sherlock’s "utility" while his actions clearly show otherwise sooner or later would make people question Mycroft's impartiality regarding his little brother.

#### Therefore, Sherlock _really_ needs to stop meddling with his brother's business

And since he never listens to Mycroft, Mycroft has to find other means to stop Sherlock from getting involved, and particulary to stop him from poking his nose into this whole Moriarty affair.

**… what was that about sending a proper distraction again?**

**Controlling Sherlock's interactions with and focussing his whole attention on only one (1) man is a lot easier than having him running around in the open, pulling at every loose thread of the web he happens to find, while still looking for the answer to a question no one better ever had asked:**

**Now he _knows,_ and finally we can all take a deep breath.**

Still, Jim is not entirely wrong with what he says at the pool, and it could indeed be seen as a "friendly warning":

#### If Sherlock doesn't stop prying, "Moriarty" _will_ burn the heart out of him

**– because, if Sherlock keeps poking his nose into everything, eventually, someday, he _will_ find out what's really going on.**

**Aren't we lucky that Sherlock now is more than a bit obsessed with his new favourite ~~toy~~ nemesis.**

(Not quite sure if Mycroft's fix-it didn't work a bit too well there…)

**But okay, at least Sherlock finally stopped meddling with the _real_ Moriarty.**

**Problem fixed – at least for now…**


	3. Fix-It #2: The Final Problem is “Staying Alive” (1/3)

#### Why Bond Air and TRF are linked

Going into series 2 now, and we all know where that leads: The Reichenbach Fall.

**But _why_ did Sherlock Holmes have to die – without actually dying?**

Soon after the pool, Sherlock gets himself into very deep waters – only this time, it will be almost impossible to fix the situation again.

Even for Mycroft.

* * *

**This is part #3 of the "Game Theory" series ([x](the-game-theory.tumblr.com/content)).**

[[MORE]]

####  Interlude: The series 2 timeline conundrum

**It was Mrs Hudson, in her dress, with the deerstalker.**

The timeline of series 2 is a bit... wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey.  


Referencing this thread ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/146367004466/did-you-know-the-first-baker-street-scenes-of-thob)), but long story short: **Sherlock wasn't all keyed up, put himself through cold turkey and harpooned a dead pig because of Irene, but because of what happened at the pool.**

#### Therefore, Sherlock and John went to Baskerville _before_ they ever got involved with Irene’s photographs

The same newspaper in both scenes indicates that Sherlock's desperate search for the last stack of cigarettes in his flat happened **_on the same day_** Irene first decided that "it's time" to go and attract Sherlock's attention.

And looking at the following exchanges, one can't but wonder whether one really should stick to the timeline of John's blog, where "By Royal Appointment" and "The Hounds of Baskerville" are listed with **a one year gap (!)** in-between:  


**So, since the _real_ timeline of those two episodes isn't exactly linear, I just want to point out that our favourite torture scene at the end of THoB…**  


**… could have happened at _any_ given point in time – and not necessarily "right after THoB".**

* * *

####  Back to the pool

Because this is where we left off in the last post ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/169512292886/fix-it-1-who-or-what-is-moriarty)) – and Sherlock and John just almost died together.

Which left Sherlock a bit… wired.

This "game" between him and Jim escalated pretty quickly, and he probably only realised when he saw John strapped in Semtex how much he actually had risked by agreeing to rush headlong into this “game”.

Then again, Jim Moriarty is probably the most interesting and diverting opponent Sherlock has been facing in a really long time, if not ever, so going back to dealing with those ordinary clients now must be a real downer.

**Therefore it's not surprising to see Sherlock suddenly taking _so many_ cases, not only in an attempt to occupy himself, but also trying to find a truly interesting mystery.**

**Exactly this increased activity, in combination with John's blog, quite "accidentally" results in them becoming an internet phenomenon and eventually builds up Sherlock's reputation as "boffin" detective.**

Not every case seems to be worthy of Sherlock's attention, though. And whenever simply ignoring the boring cases doesn't help, Sherlock goes out and harpoons even-toed ungulates.

Or hacks into John's computer and reads the emails to his girlfriends.

**Tl;dr: He's ~~horny~~ bored.**

####  And a bored Sherlock is never a good Sherlock

**Because, even if he himself is blissfully unaware of it, he's getting dangerously close to discovering a lead to another project of the _real_ Moriarty.**

**Again.**

**Aren't we lucky that Sherlock would rather go and fight an _invented_ super villain, while being dressed up as a ninja ([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/16june)), than notice the number of people suddenly coming to Baker Street inquiring about the missing bodies of their dead relatives.**

**Still, this starts to become quite of a problem:** Not only could every next client finally make Sherlock notice the pattern he so far blindly has been ignoring, but John is also blogging in great detail about all those strange cases regarding bodies which are not where they are supposed to be, and how BAFFLED, and flummoxed, and bamboozled Sherlock is about all this **– on a publicly accessible website which has been gaining a lot of traffic and attention lately.**

([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/01august)) ([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/13july)) ([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/12august))  


**Provided that potential clients continued dropping all those clues about the Bond Air project at this rate: Even if _Sherlock_ won't draw the right conclusions from all of this, somebody else out there eventually might.**

**_And_ _then_  Sherlock's boredom-induced hunt for a missing rabbit gets him involved in _yet another_ top-secret, conspiracy-laden government project...**

Granted, this way at least he stops poking at project Moriarty for a couple of days, but breaking into a military base using a master keycard he nicked from his big brother certainly goes on the "con" side of the "Sherlock's utility" list.

####  Let's put his time and gift to some _actual_ use!

And since Sherlock is not the only "princess" to go around and cause trouble these days in order to alleviate their ~~horniness~~ boredom, maybe he'll even get a knighthood out of it.

**Sending the gay detective to extract some compromising photographs from a lesbian dominatrix who's trying to blackmail the Royal Family – what could possibly go wrong?**  


… damn.  


Tfw your distraction turns out to be linked to the secret you wanted to distract from.

**Or to be a bit more picturesque: Mycroft's carefully constructed house of cards didn't only collapse just now, but got crushed by the weight of a grounded passenger jet.**  


([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/159860169670/thediogenes-6x10wilson-this-is-the-only-thing))

####  "Bond Air" is Mycroft's "Skyfall"

Thanks to Sherlock's deduction, the whole Bond Air operation is now compromised and therefore cancelled – the plane will never fly.

We know that this was not the only plane Mycroft and his people equipped with dead passengers, and that they collaborated with at least two foreign countries for this whole operation – however: The following statement, together with Mycroft's extreme distress in the final third of the episode, do seem a bit "exaggerated", **if they _really_ were talking only about _planes…_**

Years of planning to intercept bomb attacks on planes, that seems to be not only very specific, but also a bit... inefficient.

(Also, corpses don’t usually have that long of a shelf life.)

**But if we were talking about deceiving terrorists by redirecting and controlling crimes _in general,_ "months _and years_ of planning", as well as Mycroft's very emotional breakdown in this specific episode suddenly do make a lot of sense…**

**Because Mycroft's worst nightmare just came true: By making the wrong deduction at the wrong time, Sherlock just ended up doing something very bad.**  


####  Sherlock inadvertently busted Project Moriarty

**And the "funny" part is: Sherlock is absolutely unaware of what he did.**

**But that is the thing about Sherlock: Very often, he just deduces things – unable to control it _himself_.**

**And he doesn't think about the consequences of what he just happened to deduce _before_ he voices his conclusions. So, depending on the circumstances, this can in fact make his genius more harmful than useful.**  


> SHERLOCK: There’s a margin for error but I’m pretty sure there’s a Seven Forty-Seven leaving Heathrow tomorrow at six thirty in the evening for Baltimore. Apparently it’s going to save the world. **Not sure how that can be true but give me a moment;** I’ve only been on the case for eight seconds.

(And we've all seen how _that_ one ended…)

There is a certain irony to the fact that Sherlock didn't have to know _anything_ about the true motives behind the Bond Air operation – it being tied to project Moriarty, that is – to make ^this momentous deduction. ****

**Hence all of Mycroft's efforts to distract his brother and to keep the situation under control turned out to be in vain… In the end, all it took was an ill-timed deduction meant to "impress a _girl"._**

Bond Air is exposed, the terrorists know about the bomb – it is only a matter of time now until _someone else_ eventually figures out the truth about project Moriarty.  


And if a worldwide "network" of criminals ever were to realise they had been played like this the entire time – _by secret services and governments…_

… millions of innocent citizens would fall victim to the vengeful wrath of a lot of very dangerous people.

**This whole thing has become too woolly, too messy...**

**The sting operating "Moriarty" needs to be stopped immediately, and the traces leading back to the legitimate authorities behind it all obfuscated as thoroughly as possible.**

It is convenient enough that outsiders who've already been in touch with Moriarty think of him as a "consulting criminal", hence "a person", and that he is thought to be the one and only leader of this worldwide network of criminals.

**A sudden and moreover unexplained "disappearance" of Jim Moriarty, however, would only cause unwanted suspicion; there needs to be a convincing reason for him to permanently cease his activity as a consulting criminal.**

**And what could be more _permanent_ than killing this "person" off…**

([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/139743193241/everyones-got-secrets-and-they-all-replied-too))

Not only is this the proper way to deal with such a "loose end", but one also wouldn't have to fear the revenge of any of Moriarty's now disgruntled clients due to cancelled deals and unsettled grievances.  


#### "Moriarty" has to die –  
because one can't really take revenge on a _dead_ person

****

**But in order to _actually_ nip any burgeoning hard feelings in the bud, the story behind Moriarty's downfall has to spread to even the furthest branches of the network _as quickly as possible._**

Hence merely an obscure, whispered voice would not suffice; not only would it take too long, but its (obviously non-existent) credibility would need to be established and proven first, etc etc etc ...

**An already well-established, widespread, fast-paced and _reliable_ information channel is needed.**

####  "I love newspapers. Fairy tales – and pretty grim(m) ones, too."

**And one thing is certain: The more sensational the news, the faster and wider it will spread.**

**How utterly convenient that "Jim" now happens to commit _The Crime Of The Century._**

That alone would already be a good enough story by itself, but it doesn't quite fulfill its actual purpose: As of now, James Moriarty only is being accused of attempting to steal the crown jewels (among other things), and therefore he is nothing more than an "ordinary" thief.

**But remember: The whole point of this was to make the world believe that James Moriarty is a "consulting criminal" and the leader of a huge underground network.**

####  Jim _officially_ needs to become Moriarty's face

**Because then, if Jim was to die, Moriarty (and eventually his network) would die with him.**

But it wouldn't have been very convincing for Jim to just go out there and _claim_ to be the most evil mastermind to ever have evil'ed **– which is why he actually got his hands dirty and broke into all these places.**

**The three _most secure_ places in the country. **

**And then he got acquitted of the charges without having to show any proof for his "innocence" to the jury.**

That's quite a feat.

And, on the surface, also a very marketable skill set for a criminal mastermind.

So far, there's nothing really remarkable or fishy about it: Advertising for his criminal business seems to be a good enough explanation for why Jim did what he did **– but if it had been the _actual_ reason, the episode would have ended right here:**

**Having managed to vanish without a single trace after getting all this public attention, James Moriarty would have gone back to his now booming consulting business and happily continued to sit in the centre of his web till the end of days.**

####  There was _no need_ for Richard Brook

**If James Moriarty actually broke into all these places in order to _advertise,_ he wouldn't have gone and activated the self-destruct button by "creating" Richard Brook only six weeks later.**

But there was a Richard Brook, and eventually the story ended with both Jim and Sherlock committing (fake-)suicide on the rooftop of St Bart's.

**As if this had been meant to happen all along...**

**… and, to quote Moffat, "what a waste of a scene that would be". ([x](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2F1YR3VC_ac0M%3Ft%3D11m41s&t=YjZhYzk0M2IwNmQ0M2FkMzkzNjM5NzRmMDJkODE0ZDY5YjRkZGI0ZixoeVcyWlkxVw%3D%3D&b=t%3AszGEG1JREqLbPxpveKpyOQ&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwaitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F169281591681%2Ffix-it-2-the-final-problem-is-staying-alive&m=0))**  


**;)**


	4. Fix-It #2: The Final Problem is “Staying Alive” (2/3)

To summarise what happened so far: Jim just spent a considerable amount of effort and time to _publicly_ establish himself as the criminal mastermind Sherlock always thought him to be – and then he suddenly decides to end it all.

Except, it really isn't. None of the "why"s in TRF were ever truly answered, and yet Sherlock continues to "solve" the puzzles, not realising that he's actually only doing exactly what Jim wants him to do.

**Because that's Sherlock's weakness.**

**He always wants everything to be clever.**

But him being cleverer than anyone else and finding all these clues that were only _planted for him to find_ only becomes part of the big smear campaign, which then gradually starts to unfold in the second half of the episode.

**This is the story of Sir-Boast-A-Lot…**

#### And how, this time, destroying Sherlock's reputation is the only way to save his life.

* * *

Let's start with what we know:

At the end of TRF, both Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty died on the rooftop of St Bart's – by (fake-)suiciding at each other.

However, this is not the "official" version of the story...

**Sherlock Holmes invented his own nemesis James Moriarty and killed the actor Richard Brook on the rooftop of St Bart's before committing suicide, because the world was about to find out that he is a fraud.**

**^this is the result. But: What happened?**

#### And, more importantly: Why?

I already hinted at it in the last post: If the goal of Jim's "advertising" had been simple customer acquisition, the episode would have been over after he managed the impossible, i.e. to completely disappear after the trial.

Even if the reason had only been to give project Moriarty a public face in order to be able to "kill it off" soon (in order to cover up the traces leading back to the “actual masterminds” behind this entire project), the episode also could have ended here.

 **Now Moriarty _has_ a face; and killing off _one_ person isn't really a big deal.** And if the only other thing that you needed to accomplish was spreading the news quickly (via mass media; out of the established reasons ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/169781782511/fix-it-2-the-final-problem-is-staying-alive))), this still can be done completely without involving a third party.

**Or, in other words: One does not need to disgrace Sherlock Holmes _in order to_ kill Moriarty.**

**And yet, this is exactly what the entire rest of the episode was about.**

####  Kiss & Tell  
– The Truth About Richard Brook

With Moriarty having disappeared into thin air, the episode continues, and Mycroft kidnaps John (again) and has him brought to the Diogenes Club, presumably to warn him about all the assassins, who – for no apparent reason – are still circling around Baker Street like vultures.

But there is something else that John notices in the Stranger's Room before Mycroft can tell him any of this:

Moriarty vanishes, nothing happens for two months, but look: All this time our dear Kitty had apparently secretly been interviewing someone called Richard Brook to gather all the juicy information for her great kiss and tell story.  


####  Kitty finally got her first, big scoop

**Which... turned out to feature rather a big canard.**

Bravo.

But that's an overly ambitious journalist for you, ~~isn't that right, Ian ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/154861175806/the-moriarty-project))?~~ Give them the "scoop that everybody wanted", and they will be too distracted by the prospect of pushing their own career that they literally won't notice how utterly they are being played…

**We, the audience, know that it simply isn't true that Richard Brook is an actor Sherlock Holmes hired to be Moriarty.**

Sherlock would never do such a thing. He is not a fraud. And, Moriarty is the bad guy here, isn’t he? _He_ is Sherlock’s arch enemy.

**But if Kitty’s version of the story is a lie, then the _opposite_ must be true, right?**

####  Richard Brook is not an actor hired by Sherlock Holmes to be Moriarty

**Therefore James Moriarty, the consulting criminal, is real.**

It seems like the only other option there is, and especially TGG has set the stage rather beautifully for this suggestion ([x](http://waitingforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/149473981776/the-five-pips)); Sherlock draws the same conclusion as well and the rest of the episode plays out accordingly, so we just… accept it.

And it is perfectly logical, really.

 _Obviously_ Jim invented Richard Brook and all of this was just part of some clever plan to destroy Sherlock's reputation and drive them both to mutual suicide, because life just isn't worth living when you've finally beaten your one and only enemy and now everyone else is just too boring to bother sticking around for.

… yeah.

To clarify: We are supposed to believe that James Moriarty is real, a consulting criminal, a spider in a worldwide criminal network **– just like he was in the books.**

**Someone who _only_ organises crimes, always has to stay above it all, never gets his hands dirty, and lives a very reclusive life as maths professor, very careful to not draw _any_ attention to himself.**

**For. The. People. In. The. Back:**  


####  Jim is NOT the Moriarty from the books

**But who then is the character Andrew Scott is playing?**  


Since it is explained rather brilliantly in these posts, I'd like to quote the following bits from [@eva-christine](eva-christine.tumblr.com)'s Rumpelstiltskinlock meta ([x](http://eva-christine.tumblr.com/post/27733467733/iou-explanation-53-8-92-grimms-fairy-tales-cipher)) ([x](http://eva-christine.tumblr.com/post/32560017981/reichenbach-explanation-richard-brook-was-real)):

> [...] During Moriarty’s trial, all that the newspapers say about the crown jewel thief is that he’s Irish-born, “of no fixed abode,” and “Ireland’s very own man of mystery.” **It’s like he doesn’t have a past.**  
> 
> 
> **How did Moriarty manage to erase every single record of his existence ever if there is no computer code that can unlock “any door, anywhere”? Furthermore, how did he create Richard Brook, the actor?** He may have paid someone to alter all the records, just like he hired people to commit daylight robbery, but what about Richard’s CV? “Rich is best known for playing the heroic young anaesthetist Brian Stokes in the long-running BBC1 Medical Drama _Emergency_.” **Why would the criminal mastermind put _a long-running BBC1 medical drama_ on his _fake_ resume?** Does he not realize how easy it is to check something like that and discredit his entire story? Why include “TV Work” section at all? Wouldn’t it make more sense to just list a bunch of small theater plays?

#### It’s Occam’s razor. Nothing is known about Jim Moriarty because he never existed in the first place. Richard Brook, on the other hand, can easily prove his existence because he is a completely real person.

> [...] I’m surprised that [Richard Brook] wasn’t recognized [as the actor from _Emergency_ or the storyteller on kids’ TV] during his trial, but I suppose the art of disguise is knowing how to hide in plain sight. **I’m sure some people thought that the crown jewel thief looked a lot like “that guy from that TV show,” but people see what they expect to see, and no one expected the criminal mastermind to be an actor.** Besides, Richard knew that even if someone did recognize him, he could just tell his “Sherlock hired me” story a bit sooner and back it up with all the TV work he did.

**Moftiss even might have hidden a quite blunt clue regarding the fact that "Jim" is only an actor…**

> [...] Moriarty isn’t talking about Monkford’s disappearance here, not really. **He is answering Sherlock’s previous question: “Who are you?”**
> 
> **The clue to Moriarty’s dual identity is in the name – Janus Cars.** Janus, as John Watson correctly remembers, is “the god with two faces” – the god of beginnings, endings, and transitions between two different conditions. The friendly bomber’s two different “faces” are Richard Brook and Jim Moriarty. **Coincidentally (or perhaps not coincidentally), Richard Brook is an actor, and Janus masks are the symbol of theater.**

So, what is the third option?

**Richard Brook is not an actor Sherlock Holmes hired to be Moriarty – he is an actor _someone_ hired to be Moriarty.**

####  Richard Brook  
– an actor _Mycroft_ Holmes hired to be Moriarty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And, in the next part, I’ll show you how exactly Mycroft saved Sherlock’s life – by making him commit suicide.


	5. Fix-It #2: The Final Problem is “Staying Alive” (3/3)

In only 48 hours after the first in-show mention of Richard Brook, Sherlock is utterly disgraced and his reputation completely destroyed – which ultimately leads Sherlock to committing "suicide".

(What does one do again, when in disgrace... remind me, what is the modern thing? ([x](https://dmellieon.tumblr.com/post/133689108173/mid0nz-what-is-the-modern-thing)))

**The fall from grace… however: The fall never really ended up _killing_ Sherlock.**  


#### What if I told you now that the fall actually _saved_ Sherlock's life?

**But why would Mycroft not only be okay with, but actually give someone the order to carry out a very elaborate scheme that would _result in_ Sherlock committing suicide?**

And I say "very elaborate", because disgracing Sherlock had been the objective of TRF _from the very beginning:_

####  Operation "Fake Suicide At Each Other" is go

* * *

Even if there is a two-month-gap between the trial and Richard Brook's first appearance, Sherlock had known all along that Jim's little game hadn't been over yet: During their little tea party in 221b, Jim had announced that he owed Sherlock a fall, and that he'd better learn to like riddles – setting the stage perfectly for what is about to happen.

Therefore, when the two children get kidnapped and everyone, including the police, starts to doubt Sherlock's authenticity, it very quickly becomes apparent to Sherlock where this whole setup is bound to lead:

> JOHN: Sherlock, I don’t want the world believing you’re ...  
>  SHERLOCK: That I am what?  
>  JOHN: A fraud.

(Having "Richard Brook" spill the beans about the "fake detective" on the front page of The Sun is just icing on the cake at this point.)

Sherlock knows that he's already walked right into Jim's trap, and assuming that Jim wants him dead, he figures that this whole plan can only be meant to end in him committing suicide.

**But, and this is the catch:**

**The knowledge that his own suicide might become inevitable gives Sherlock the time and opportunity to come up with suitable precautions–**

**… and while Sherlock thinks that he is _outwitting_ Jim by faking his own suicide, he is only doing _what he was supposed to do_ all along!**

#### But why, if not for the "game" with Jim Moriarty, would it be _necessary_ for Sherlock to fake his own death?

Back to ASiB, for a second… remember how I told you in chapter 3 that the timeline in series 2 is a bit timey-wimey?

**Since THoB took place somewhere in the middle of, and NOT after ASiB, that means TRF happened more or less right after Bond Air – and, I daresay:**

####  The fall happened as a _direct consequence_ of Bond Air

Because Mycroft Holmes finally needed to prove that he is the Ice Man he always claims to be.

Now, it finally happened: Sherlock got himself into so deep water, that he now has outlived his usefulness; but it is exactly this "utility" that allows Mycroft to keep his sibling around, and an eye on him.  


He has proven to be an uncontrollable threat to public safety; and that is something Mycroft, and the powers that be, need to deal with.

#### People want Sherlock Holmes dead

(^and not even “the bad guys”, this time.)

But this is clearly something that is not in Mycroft's interests; after all, he cares very much about his little brother.  


However, in order to keep up his facade, it now has to look like Mycroft gave the orders to deal with this issue in the _appropriate_ manner–

... just like he would _for any other agent_ who fucked up this badly–

**... when, in reality, Mycroft sets it all up in such a way that will allow Sherlock to come to the conclusion that he needs to _fake_ his own death, have the opportunity to do so, and spend the next couple of years abroad, keeping a very low profile. **

**In order to put the people who wanted him dead off their homicidal intentions, it needed to look like Sherlock had actually died.**

> SHERLOCK: So who’s after you?  
>  IRENE: People who want to kill me.  
>  SHERLOCK: Who’s that?  
>  IRENE: Killers.  
>  JOHN: It would help if you were a tiny bit more specific.  
>  SHERLOCK: **So you faked your own death in order to get ahead of them.**  
>  IRENE: **It worked for a while.**

  


#### “Killing” Sherlock Holmes was the only way to keep him safe

… feeling bad yet?

Obviously, all of this was only ever meant as a temporary solution; **but it is exactly this decision which reinforces the idea to Mycroft's colleagues that the Ice Man really ever only acts "for the greater good" – even if that involves giving the order to kill his own family.**

(If Sherlock _then_ is clever enough to _fake_ his death, well… that's really not Mycroft's fault, is it?)

**But Sherlock is not the only "man” Mycroft needs to get rid of after the Bond Air fiasco.**

####  Project Moriarty needs to die, too

The project which Mycroft is in charge of.

**What a lucky coincidence…**

Isn't it funny how Sherlock conveniently happens to solve those three big cases at the beginning of the episode, building up his reputation as a boffin detective even more–

… just in time for Jim to then involve Sherlock's name into his own big heist–

… which then not only leads to Sherlock getting involved in those break-ins, but also to him being called as an expert witness in Jim's trial, **where Sherlock surges ahead and does not try to prove that Jim is guilty of breaking into all those places, but immediately tells the world everything there is to know about "James Moriarty, the consulting criminal"?**

> SHERLOCK: James Moriarty is for hire.  
>  PROSECUTING BARRISTER: A tradesman?  
>  SHERLOCK: Yes.  
>  PROSECUTING BARRISTER: But not the sort who’d fix your heating.  
>  SHERLOCK: No, the sort who’d plant a bomb or stage an assassination, but I’m  
>  sure he’d make a pretty decent job of your boiler. […]

**_Sherlock’s_ words.**

> PROSECUTING BARRISTER: **How**  
>  would you describe this man – his character?   
>  SHERLOCK: First mistake. James Moriarty isn’t a man at all – he’s a spider; a  
>  spider at the centre of a web – a criminal web with a thousand threads and he  
>  knows precisely how each and every single one of them dances.

**How _Sherlock_ would describe him.**

**Up until this point, even in court, James Moriarty only was the lunatic who attempted to steal the crown jewels. Thanks to Sherlock Holmes, the whole world now thinks he is an insane, criminal mastermind.**

In this case, it seems that the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he _does_ exist.

####  Sherlock Holmes said that Richard Brook is James Moriarty, so it must be true

Which is exactly what was going to be Sherlock's downfall later in the episode, and also the reason why Kitty's Kiss & Tell story would have been untouchable – despite Sherlock's claims that one could simply "kill Rich Brook and bring back Jim Moriarty".

**_Apart from Sherlock saying so,_ there literally is no tangible proof that Jim is what Sherlock claims him to be.**

So, if Richard Brook's life story was solid, **because it was actually the truth ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/170047175056/fix-it-2-the-final-problem-is-staying-alive)), ** and the world therefore believed that Sherlock Holmes was a fraud, what was there left to do for Sherlock except to continue Jim's game and die in disgrace, as he was meant to do?  


> SHERLOCK: **Everybody** _wants_ to believe it – that’s what makes  
>  it so clever. A lie that’s preferable to the truth. All my brilliant  
>  deductions were just a sham. No-one feels inadequate – Sherlock Holmes is just  
>  an ordinary man. 

**The _only_ action Sherlock still could take at this point was to try to die without actually dying. **

**There was nothing else left to do, and no other way out.**

####  Richard spilling the beans for Kitty's article made sure that Sherlock would _fake_ his suicide

#### Just as Mycroft had planned

#### Holmes "killing" Holmes

And it worked... perfectly.  


**Both Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty "died" on the rooftop of St Bart's, and therefore both of Mycroft's biggest problems have now been solved with a single blow.**

(Not “a waste of a scene” at all.) ****

**But it did involve a deal with the devil. ([x](http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/qhx_kDLhxL8/Sherlock+Films+in+London+2/v9R5qw5VmU8/Mark+Gatiss))**

**And possibly … five minutes of unsupervised conversation.**

####  And all of this to ensure that Sherlock Holmes would keep "staying alive" ****

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since there is a big overlap between TRF and series 4, I will explain certain things in more detail in later posts… just one more thing for now:
> 
> **Despite pretending to tie all the loose ends together, none of the open questions raised in previous episodes were answered in TFP.**
> 
> **There was, however, one extraordinary thing TFP did** – and no, it's not the clowns or the pirates or the madwoman in the attic… 
> 
> ####  TFP brought Bond Air back
> 
> Which is too deliberate a choice to be random. 
> 
> **The Final Problem, Sherlock's Fall, Moriarty, and Bond Air are linked.**
> 
> And the big solution of it all certainly isn't "Eurus"... 


	6. Fix-It #3: The "Golden Days" of series 3

#### And they lived happily ever after – until they didn't

But that's series 3 for you… the wheel turns, nothing is ever new.

**Because, at first, Mycroft only needs to make sure that Sherlock doesn't die in Eastern Europe…**

**… and then, Mycroft only needs to make sure that Sherlock doesn't die in Eastern Europe.**

* * *

~~Project~~ Moriarty is dead. Long live ~~project~~ Moriarty.

(And, yes, Andrew’s character is probably still alive too; it's not like anyone of importance to the plot ever really died in this show…)

**Project Moriarty ([x](https://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/163340086215/the-moriarty-project)) had to "die", because it had become too dangerous to continue – at least under that name.** But the idea was too good to scrap it entirely, so I'm fairly convinced that business did more or less continue as usual (after all, we did have someone called "Moran" who fits the description of a suitable successor, but more of that later). 

Given that the actual "network" of criminals believed James Moriarty to be a real person / consulting criminal, there's no way anyone of _them_ would have swallowed that someone called "Richard Brook" had only impersonated the criminal mastermind.

^This whole story about Sherlock Holmes inventing Moriarty and killing that actor? Surely, the criminal underground must know there's something fishy about that story; **for them, James Moriarty, the consulting criminal, _was_ real. ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/169235682381/moriarty-british-intelligence-created-me-bond))**

And yet, Moriarty's "old acquaintances" would not be stupid enough to get themselves into trouble by setting the record straight; so, the rest of the world continues to believe Sherlock Holmes was a fraud who invented his own nemesis for the next two years.

Until one day, suddenly...

#### … nOW ISN'T THAT A TURNIP

**Richard Brook _did indeed_ prove to be the creation of James Moriarty, and it was Sherlock Holmes who had been the real victim in this game _the entire time._**

I _do_ wonder what did cause them to reopen that investigation and now actually find the necessary proof for "the truth", because, let's be honest: It's been two years. Everyone's gotten on with their lives. And Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty are both putrefying away in their respective holes in the ground somewhere.

And only very few people know that this actually isn't true.

Sherlock Holmes is still alive – and:

####  Many Happy Returns

Having faked his own death, Sherlock has been busy "taking down Moriarty's network" to make sure that no revenge is wrecked upon the people he loves. Very careful not to attract any attention to himself (and the fact that he is still alive), he is not taking credit for any of the cases he gets himself involved in, and generally tries to keep a very low profile. 

**But even the great Sherlock Holmes can't vanish into thin air completely, no matter how hard he might have tried – and if even _Anderson, of all people,_ can trace his steps...**

**… then so can Mycroft.**

It may be a disgrace putting one's little brother into danger like that ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/170122988540/fix-it-2-the-final-problem-is-staying-alive)), but Mycroft of all people would have made sure to keep a weather eye on Sherlock during these two years.  


(And on the people dear to Sherlock as well…)

**Which is why it's no surprise that Mycroft knew _exactly_ when it was time for him to "wade in", because Sherlock had gotten himself into serious trouble – _again._**

**But how could Mycroft justify doing all this legwork himself in order to save his sibling, whom he supposedly does not care about?**  


__

#### There will always come a time when we need Sherlock Holmes

**And _that_ time has finally come.**

#### Because, _obviously,_ the great Sherlock Holmes is the _only_ person able to prevent a terrorist attack on Parliament

An attack which Mycroft and his people have _solid_ information on, because some brave agent apparently _gave his life_ in order to give them a very cryptic, but _vital_ clue. ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/128044401451/oscar-has-none-of-your-shit-anthea))

An attack which is so imminent, that there is still enough time for Mycroft to track down Sherlock, who's currently deep undercover somewhere in Eastern Europe, and smuggle his way up some military ranks in Serbia to get his brother back home.

(It’s not like Mycroft doesn’t have the whole MI6 at his disposal and therefore could have chosen any other agent who was already in London for this job...)

And there's even enough time for Sherlock to shave, and to be properly welcomed back amongst all his friends, solve some very unrelated cases together with Molly, play deduction with Mycroft, meet up with train guy, and save John from a random bonfire-

#### … it's not quite adding up, is it?

**Sometimes a deception is so audacious, so outrageous that you can’t see it even when it’s staring you in the face.**

#### Maybe even a bit… _too_ specific?

Let's look at how the penny dropped for Sherlock: He thinks he finally has figured out the _true_ meaning of Mycroft's oh-so-valuable piece of intel, and that it was literally a secret message disguised as a ~~stupid~~ pun… 

… when actually this clue – on its own! – wouldn't have done anything at all to help Sherlock solve this case!  


**What _did_ get him to draw the correct conclusions were two other things which _someone_ poked Sherlock's nose into:**

(Yeah, I did mean the "nose" part quite literally.)  


**What a _coincidence_ that a completely _unrelated_ Chullo left by one of Sherlock's apparently _random_ clients leads Sherlock to being shown the decisive bit of security footage which features one of the people he was surveilling in regards to the terrorist attack _finally (!)_ behaving suspiciously, and conveniently enough tells him all he needs to know about the bomb and where to find it.**

**Not.** ([x](https://youtu.be/3zNjQecyjE8?t=3s))

All things considered, Sherlock ended up being suspiciously successful in this matter despite lacking most of the necessary skills or experience needed for fighting terrorism; after all, things like that don't usually come within the province of a private detective. 

**But _obviously,_ the great Sherlock Holmes is the only person who can prevent a terrorist attack on Parliament.**  


#### A terrorist attack that was literally set up for Sherlock Holmes to prevent, that is

And, yes, the person responsible for setting up this "fake" terrorist attack and assigning Sherlock with the mission of preventing it is obviously Mycroft – he is the only person with means and motives to put that bomb in the tunnel under Parliament.

####  But _why_ would Mycroft do this?

**In his defense: He never meant for the bomb to actually explode.**

**He just meant to frighten everyone. A bit.**

Looking at the more political motivations behind this scheme, we need to talk about the anti-terrorism Bill – which the House is supposed to vote on in an all-night sitting on the day that coincides both with Guy Fawkes Day and the planned date for the terrorist attack.

**The "most important vote of this parliament" – and it's about to fall through miserably.**

Which is no surprise, really. Looking at what such a bill might entail… 

… it's obvious that people aren't quite happy about the government trying to establish such a thing. They don't see the safety and protection as a benefit if it's restricting their privacy like this – and, after all, the threat doesn't seem all too big _at the moment_ ; those politicians surely are exaggerating (as always). Are such measures really _necessary?_

Well... pulling off a (fake) terrorist attack aimed at one of Britain's most iconic landmarks, literally on ~~the day of the sitting~~ Guy Fawkes Day, should be intimidating and sensational enough to convince people that a bit more surveillance might actually be a good thing, because how else could such attacks possibly be prevented (in the future)?

**There can't always conveniently be a hero / consulting detective at hand...**

#### Sherlock needed to be considered a hero, so Mycroft made him a dragon to slay

Evidently, Sherlock saving the day makes for a great story, and now completely restores his reputation in no time.

#### Sherlock Holmes is back from the dead, and the hero again

**The way things played out, _no one_ except Sherlock could have found this bomb – because Mycroft couldn't have nudged _any other agent_ so close to the solution of this case that they were literally already tripping over it–**

... at least not without them noticing that there might be some ulterior (dubious) motive behind Mycroft feeding them all these _incredibly_ specific ~~puns~~ clues.

(Also, _any other agent_ would have become hella suspicious about the bomb having an Off switch, but more about that later.)

**By assigning Sherlock with this mission, Mycroft made use of the fact that he is Sherlock's emotional blind spot.**

#### Mycroft is Sherlock's Big Brother – knowing things is _what he does_

**And Sherlock would never suspect Mycroft of pulling off something as shady as a faked attempt to blow up Parliament; or, at least, he would never believe to be "stupid" enough to actually fall victim to Mycroft's manipulations _himself._**

#### Caring is not an advantage, indeed

But Mycroft did not assign Sherlock with this mission in order to prove that he's only the stupid little brother who can be played like a fiddle.

Mycroft needed Sherlock to solve a Big, Sensational case right after his "resurrection" in order to completely restore his reputation, and to prove that there will always come a time when they need Sherlock Holmes.

**Because _needing_ Sherlock Holmes was the essential premise for his comeback.**

**And Mycroft managed to come up with a plan that would not only serve his own political goals, but also cleverly hide the _actual_ reason why he did all the legwork to rescue his little brother from Serbia.**  


**But if Mycroft cared so much about his little brother, why would he put him into such a "dangerous" situation after literally just saving him from being beaten and tortured?**

Let me ask you a counter question:

#### Why was there an Off switch?

Ehm…….. no.

A transport lock or something similar, yes, I totally support this – when you go through the trouble of making a bomb and picking the place you want to blow up, you really wouldn't want the bomb to explode prematurely **– but once the thing is in place, _and activated, REMOTELY (!)_ , simply flicking an _easily accessible_ switch on the thing itself should not be enough to switch off a bomb the size of a train carriage.**

**What even is bomb disposal, literally _anyone_ can use a goddamn switch!**

It is ridiculous, and it doesn't (seem to) make any sense.

**Unless if the bomb never was meant to actually explode.**

A bomb in a tunnel directly under the House on the day Parliament plans to vote on the anti-terrorism Bill, which just happens to be November 5th… this whole thing could only be more Guy Fawkes if it was bound to fail all along–

Oh.

^Lord Moran, ~~super terrorist~~.  


Looking at the blatant "subtext" of him being the replacement of Jim Moriarty, i.e. the scapegoat for all of the project's machinations, he's possibly just there in order to remind us that **even if "Moriarty" is dead, the project isn't. There are just different players now.**

* * *

**So, let's move on and talk a bit about more Sherlock's role in this play – and, more importantly, how Mycroft is a master at exploiting Sherlock's _weakness._**

####  Because only Sherlock Holmes is stupid enough to believe that an Off switch on a bomb is _clever_

He finds a bomb that _happens_ to have an Off switch, which in itself is very unusual, and yet Sherlock doesn't stop and doubt it for a moment. Quite the opposite. The Off switch is there, it must have been put there for a reason, so it has to mean something; it _has to be_ clever. Why could it be clever? Oh, obviously: If anything goes wrong, it's a way for the clever terrorists to make sure they don't blow themselves up. How clever.

(I mean, another method could be to remote control the bomb and safely activate it from your hotel room while you're sitting on your bed all comfy, watching the news on the telly, but what do I know…)

**But since Sherlock believes the terror alert to be legit, because Mycroft has solid information that it will happen, and because Mycroft assigned him with this mission, of course the bomb is an actual threat.**  


**Therefore, there can’t be anything fishy about that Off switch, either.**

And it _definitely_ wasn’t put there so that 

Sherlock would be able to successfully deactivate it _– all on his own,_  
and therefore not only _not_ be blown up,but also be able to take all the credit for doing so himself, and therefore be the hero of this story.


</sarcasm>

#### The dragon is slain, and finally all is well

Sherlock is safe and back home, and with Moriarty being "dead" and his entire network "dismantled" – by the great Sherlock Holmes _himself_ – there's no one left to take revenge for their boss's death on Sherlock or his loved ones.

The reputation of the detective who died in disgrace two years ago also is 100% restored, and he's happy to pick up where he left and solve crimes together with John – and Mary.

Also, there's a wedding coming up, and love is amazing, fluffy clouds and little birds are amazing ([x](http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/11august)) – but that's for another story.  


**The "Golden Days" of series 3 – when everything was fine, and Mycroft finally didn't have to Worry about his little brother anymore.**

#### Until... that happened:

**And that …**

**… and … that.**

***clears throat***  


#### Oh, Sherlock… What have you done?

**A cold-blooded murder in front of a dozen cameras and witnesses is quite something else than an alleged murder / double "suicide" on a secluded rooftop.**  


****

**Even for Mycroft Holmes, this is going to be very hard to "fix".**

**Because now, Sherlock _actually_ isa murderer.**

**But _he will_ fix it.**

**Like a proper big brother.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this post, I was partly redoing a much older meta of mine, "Why There Was An Off Switch" ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/133856389416/why-there-was-an-off-switch)), but now having moved on from M-Theory;   
>  **Mycroft is not UNDER Moriarty’s thumb – Mycroft IS Moriarty’s thumb ([x](http://waitedforgarridebs.tumblr.com/post/155578647676/what-if-the-idea-of-moriarty-was-just-the-creation)).**


End file.
